Disturbing Truths III: Ghosts
by Princess.Die.High
Summary: Isabel Snape has returned once again. The whole Wizarding World is under threat again, this time from a force they cannot physically control. But, what happens when lost love ones return? Will it unite her family? Or will it tear them apart?
1. Return

**Songs for this Chapter:  
****Isabel's Theme (See Tumblr)  
****Junk of the Heart (Happy) by the Kooks  
****The Truth by PNAU  
****Midnight by Coldplay**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.**

_**Please note in the Disturbing Truths stories, Fred Weasley survived instead of George.**_

* * *

Death, the action or fact of dying. The end of the life of a person.

It's all same.

My name is Isabel Weasley. Formerly Isabel Snape. I'm forty-four years old, and for the first time in my life, I am completely and utterly happy. It's strange. I found myself to be very content as I stood in the kitchen, making lunch for the family. I loved having all the children home during their summer holiday. I absolutely hated having to let them go. Teddy had already moved out, which when it happened, broke me in two. I thanked my lucky stars that he came home often enough to keep me sane. People often say that I'm very attached to my children. Hence, my treatment of Teddy. However, I've lost a lot in my life. I always think back to 1998, the Battle of Hogwarts. George, Ted, Tonks, Sirius, Remus and Father. All gone. It was like death just followed me, picking everyone off one by one until it got to me. Thankfully Fred, Gabrielle, Andromeda and Fleur survived. God knows what I would have done if they had left me too.

Left me.

I laughed quietly.

It was funny, the different ways we could describe death. Killed. Left. Gone. Passed. Demise. Expiration. Departure. End.

Death had become a part of who I was. There was no denying that.

But death should never stop you from living. Which is what I've done. I married the man of my dreams, I've got four beautiful children and a beautiful extended family. Sure, I've had some bumps along the way, such as going back in time, but for the most part, I've been blessed.

"Hey Mum." I snapped out of my deep, cheesy thoughts to see my eldest son walk into the kitchen.

"Hello, my darling." He came over to me, and I grabbed his cheeks and kissed his head. He was always going to be the little baby boy he used to be to me. I ruffled his hair and smiled up at him. "How is everything? The new house treating you okay? I swear, Harry better not be working you too hard at the Auror Office, or I will be having an incredibly stern word with that boy."

"Mum," Teddy laughed. He put his arms around me and held me tightly. "Calm down. Everything's fine. You'd be the first to find out if it wasn't."

"I worry too much, don't I?" I said with a sigh. Teddy let go and nodded down at me.

"I don't know how Dad deals with you sometimes."

"You better watch yourself, or I won't feed you," I told him with a stern look.

"TEDDY!" It was Harry. He ran to Teddy and jumped into his arms. Teddy was so happy to see his little brother that his hair turned bright turquoise, which made Harry giggle like no tomorrow. I couldn't believe he was ten years old already. I was already preparing to send him off to Hogwarts, it was insane. Children grow up too fast. A part of me just wanted Harry to stay the little, innocent ten year old boy that he was. Soon after, Amelie and Andie, my two girls, made their way into the kitchen. Last but not least, my husband walked through the door. He stood behind me and slipped his arms around my waist, then kissed my cheek.

"You're happy today," I said with a smile. I turned around, kissed his cheek, then placed the butter down on the table. "What have you all been getting up to today?"

"Dad was teaching Harry how to use a broom," Amelie said, moments before getting hit by her older sister, Andie. "Ow! What was that for?"

"You weren't supposed to tell her, you nitwit!" Andie snapped.

"Hey," I said, sitting down at the table with the rest of the family. "Don't say that to your sister."

"She was supposed to keep it quiet!"

"Sorry, Mummy. I didn't want to make you upset by getting on a broom too early. So I told Daddy, Andie and Ammi that we had to keep it a secret." Harry looked so upset that his sisters were fighting about him, it made me feel guilty that I even asked the question in the first place.

"It's okay Harry, don't stress darling." I looked over to Andie, and immediately decided to change the subject to the more pressing issue - her wedding. "Have you gone over the guest list again, Andie? I just want to make sure that everyone important is invited."

"Mum," she sighed. "I don't want a big wedding. Neither does Jack."

"I respect that," I told her, putting food on my plate. "But your wedding is an important event, and we have a big family and a lot of connections that we need to invite. It's only polite."

"A big wedding isn't that bad either, Andie," Fred chimed in. "I mean, your mother and I had a huge wedding. The whole Great Hall was full of people. Grandma Weasley invited people that I didn't know. Neither did your mother. But it didn't detract from the whole day." Andie sent Fred a glare. Fred was notorious for taking Andie's side in absolutely everything. "Just open your mind a little, alright? You're getting your way with a lot of things, leave the guest list to your Mum. She knows what she's doing."

"Thank you, my darling," I said, kissing Fred on the cheek.

"Ugh," Andie said, rolling her eyes in disgust.

"You'll be this age too one day, And. So when you show displays of affection with Jack, I will react the same exact way," I told her with a smirk.

* * *

Lunch with the whole family was successful. The small banter and the dad jokes from Fred contributed to a rare but special family occasion. I missed when they were all young, when this was a more frequent occasion. Family had become my number one priority, ever since I was in my early twenties. It made me sad when all the kids were at Hogwarts, and now it makes me even more sad that my two oldest had moved out. I was happy for their independence, but I've always been the doting mother type.

"Oh my Merlin above." I looked over at Fred, who's hand was on his chest. The plate he was holding was on the floor, shattered to pieces.

"Fred! What are you doing?" I sighed and went to pick up the pieces of the plate.

"Dad, what is it?" Andie asked. We all stared at Fred, confused. He stood there, staring in front of him. He was reaching out to the air in front of him. His eyes were fixed on something, like someone was standing there in front of him. I got up out of my seat and walked over to him, placing my hand on his shoulder. But it was like he couldn't feel me. He didn't acknowledge my touch at all.

"Fred," I whispered.

"You can't see him?" Fred asked me. I looked over to the empty space that Fred was so transfixed on. There was nothing there. Perhaps my husband was going insane?

"See who? I see nothing, Fred."

"George," he said. I looked over to Teddy, Andie, Amelie and Harry. Harry seemed scared and confused by his father's actions. I nodded to Amelie, who took Harry's hand and led him out of the room. This was strange. Fred had never been this consumed by his grief before, to the point where he could apparently see his twin brother in front of him. It had been years since George had gone. Why would he start thinking this now? I took Fred's hand and tried to get him to look at me, but he wouldn't turn away from what was in front of him. "It's George! It's actually him!" Fred opened his arms and seemingly went to hug his vision of George. He suddenly pulled back, his face full of stress and hurt.

"Why can't I feel you?" I glanced back at Teddy. I didn't know what to do, this had never happened before. "Why can't I feel him?" Fred asked, looking down at me.

"Fred, George isn't here." Moments after, Fred jumped backwards.

"What is it?" I asked, holding his arm tightly.

"He spoke. I swear, he just spoke to me."

"Dad, seriously. I'm worried. Uncle George is dead. He's been dead since before I was born," Andie said, getting out of her seat. "Stop scaring us. He is not here!" Fred flinched at his daughter's harsh words, but then a smile appeared on his face. "Mum, stop him! Get him to St. Mungo's, call Grandma Weasley, just do something!" I had no idea what to do. Andie's begging made me even more confused as to what to do. Before I could do something, Fred disapparated, without saying a word. My hand went to my head, I had no idea where he went, and I was seriously worried for him.

"Mum, are you okay?" Teddy asked.

"We have to find him, Teddy. Can you head to the Burrow and check if he's there for me?" Teddy nodded and turned around.

"Holy shit!" He exclaimed.

"Teddy, watch your language!" I snapped. "I swear, what is with this family today?"

"Is it really you?" Teddy said. I turned around from the kitchen to see Teddy too had begun staring off into the distance. He was almost an exact copy of Fred. I sighed and placed the plate I was washing to my side. I honestly did not have the patience to deal with this today.

"Who are you even talking to, Teddy?" Andie said, looking at me. She was worried, and I was beginning to feel the same. Teddy had reached out into the air in front of him. "Teddy, no one's there," Andie said, approaching him slowly, cautiously. "Teddy, please look at me. No one's there." Andie's eyes were full of concern. I knew she was scared. First Fred, now Teddy.

"It's Mum." Andie looked over at me.

"What? Teddy, don't be ridiculous, I'm right here!" I told him, moving over to him. And then I realised. He wasn't looking at me, he was staring ahead. His eyes were full of disbelief, the same reaction Fred had. Fred had apparently had a vision of someone in his life that had passed. Teddy, for the first time in his entire life, didn't mean me when he said the word 'Mum'. He meant the _other _Mum. He meant Tonks. "Teddy," I said softly, moving towards him slowly. "Can you see Tonks?" Teddy looked over at me and nodded.

"It's her."

"Is that his - "

"Yes, Andie," I replied quickly, cutting her off. I didn't want her to say 'his mum'. Suddenly, it hurt, thinking of another woman as Teddy's mother.

"There is no way, Mum. Seriously, is it just your cooking or something? This is impossible, you can't just have visions of loved ones who are died. And they aren't ghosts, we would have seen them," Andie said. She had folded her arms and was standing against the kitchen wall. A big part of me agreed with what Andie was saying, but at the same time, I traveled back through time with one single spell and was reunited with the younger versions of people whom I loved. And we live in the Wizarding World, almost everything is possible. Everything.

"Andie, I don't have the answer to this. I have no idea what this is. I think we just have to give it time, to see if it goes away." I walked back to the kitchen and left Teddy to himself. Whatever this was, I needed to give him space to wait and see if it passed. The same as Fred. It wasn't my place to do anything right now. I picked up my wand and charmed the dishes to wash themselves. I wasn't in the mood for any manual labour right now, not after what I had just witnessed. I needed to talk to Molly, Arthur and Andromeda right away.

"You know, they're not faking it." I stopped. It was my mind playing tricks on me. That voice couldn't have been here right now. My mind just wanted to believe it so badly, especially after what just happened with Fred and Teddy. I continued with placing charms on the kitchen to clean itself. "Isabel, they aren't faking it." There was no way. "Isabel. Listen to me. Turn around." There was absolutely no way.

I turned around, and there he was.

I fell to my knees, my hand covering my mouth to contain the cry that was most definitely going to come out.

It was him.

"Mum?" Andie said, rushing to my side.

"They're not faking it, Andie," I whispered.

"Mum. Please don't go crazy on me. Please."

"Andie, I'm not going crazy." I slowly stood up and walked towards him. He held his hand out, seemingly in waiting for me to take it. I went to touch his hand, but I couldn't feel it. It was cruel joke. He was here, physically present on this earth, but I wasn't allowed to even hold his hand.

"That might change," he said with a small smile.

"Mum, who is it?" Andie asked. Sirius nodded, indicating that I could let her know. I walked over to my eldest daughter and took her hand. "Did I ever tell you the story of Sirius Black?"

* * *

**A/N: I****'****m so happy to be back! I missed you guys! This is definitely my very last story exploring Isabel's journey, so let me know whether you're going to enjoy this or not! **


	2. Not Coincidental

**Thanks to: The name is Florine, HPFan, Potterhorse-Spirit, Guest, DelenaElejah1864, MiraclesHappen94, TheDiva121, ZabuzasGirl, aelfwyne, thingsleftdesired, MemoirsofaLostCause, Tororo101 and Strawberry Obsession for your reviews! **_**Welcome back to all my lovely past reviewers!**_

**Songs for this Chapter:  
****Isabel****'****s Theme (See Tumblr)  
****Always In My Head  
****Houdini by Foster the People  
****Buzzcut Season by Lorde**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.**

* * *

"Sirius Black?" Andie asked. I looked back at Sirius. That was so strange. Looking at him, like he was real, like he had never left me, like it was still 1995, and I was completely devoted to him. I suddenly had these feelings, those feelings like I was twenty and completely head over heels with this much older man. I looked back to Andie…was it time to tell my daughter of the man in my life before her father? The man, had he not died, would have been my husband instead of Fred Weasley. Andie was old enough. She was about to be married herself, to Jack Wood. All I needed of her to understand this story, was to understand love. We sat back down at the table, and I held her hand tight. Truth was a value that I hadn't taken very seriously over the years, but I would take it seriously now. This situation was strange enough, lying about it would only make it worse.

"What do you know about Sirius Black?" I asked her. She bit her lip, something that she took from her father. They both did the exact same thing when entering deep thought.

"He's…Uncle Harry's Godfather, I think. I know he was wrongly send to Azkaban, but he was innocent, I know that…then he escaped, and then Uncle Harry and Aunt Hermione had something to do with saving him…and then was in the Order, And he died at the Battle of the Department of Mysteries." She paused between her words, obviously trying to recall the stories that her Uncle Harry had told her. "Wait, Mum. Weren't you at that battle? Did you see him die? Is that why you can see him?" I glanced over to the doorway. Sirius, not aged a day over thirty-six, leaned against the wall, listening to us intently. He was the same age as he was when he died. That meant that I was older than him. _Eight _years older than him, even though I didn't look it. I almost smiled, but I knew it'd be an inappropriate time, so I suppressed it. I also had to suppress those _other_ thoughts…the ones I had when I was twenty, I was married to Fred. I wasn't allowed to think of Sirius has handsome or attractive.

"Uncle Harry didn't tell you anything else about Sirius Black?" I asked her, shrugging off my internal thoughts.

"Nothing important," she replied with a shrug. "Just that he was an Animagus, and that he proposed to his girlfriend the night before he died." Andie sighed after her last words. "How tragic is that? I couldn't imagine Jack proposing to me, and then the next night him dying. It'd absolutely crush me." I looked down, remembering the moment I watched him fall back into the archway. I remembered his body turning grey, and then him completely disappearing from my life. I remember sobbing in Remus' arms, and then falling off the rails in the weeks after.

"How did she react to it? Who told her?" Andie asked me. I looked back up at her, and made sure that I made complete eye contact.

"I was absolutely torn apart, Andie."

"Wait." Andie's eyes widened. She let go of my hand and sat back. She began to breathe quickly, something she did when she was shocked. "What are you saying, Mum?"

"Sit here for a moment." I stood up and walked towards a chest of drawers, where I kept precious items. I opened the third drawer from the top and reached in. I took out a small ring and clasped it tight in my hand. I closed the drawer slowly. I glanced to my right, to see Sirius looking down at my hand.

"I'm sorry that I didn't give that to you the night we were engaged. Somehow it slipped my mind, if you can believe it. I'm surprised you still have it."

"Of course I still have it," I replied quietly. I knew how strange this must have looked to Andie, seeing her mother talking to thin air. I walked back and sat next to Andie. I opened my hand to reveal the engagement ring that Sirius had left to me in his will when he died.

"It's beautiful," she said, taking the ring from my palm. "How old were you?"

"Twenty."

"So it was young love?" She asked.

"For me, yes. For him, not so much, because he wasn't young. There was an age difference. But it was true love, all the same. Pure, and full of happiness. I felt free when I was with him, Andie. Which is ironic considering he himself wasn't." I looked down at the ring and smiled. It just reminded me of every happy time I shared with Sirius. There were so many. "He was so different, Andie. Well, very different from your father. I felt a little rebellious, but every moment was just…joyful."

"Can you tell me about the night he died? And the weeks after?" It was a painful time. Talking about it still had an affect on me, but this was the time to tell all truths. Leave no stone unturned.

"It was the absolute worst time of my life," I told my oldest daughter. "He was killed by his cousin, Bellatrix Lestrange. It was like, when he died, that my whole world stopped, not only for a few seconds, but for months. The aftermath was so much worse, it was so much more painful, you have no idea. I didn't talk to anyone, I shut myself off. I drank myself to complete numbness. And I made a fool of myself at his memorial. Trust me, I was embarrassed to be me at that point."

Andie sat in silence and considered my words. I'm sure it would have been a surprise for her, she didn't know that a time like this existed. "Do you love him more than Dad?" I knew that she'd eventually ask this question. What child wouldn't? And it was a question that I had never really much considered in the past.

"I love your father with every little bit of me, Andie. Your father saved me." I kissed her head and walked back over to the chest of drawers, placing the ring back inside.

"I'll give you some alone time. I think I'll go find Dad or Teddy, even Amelie or Harry. I'm sure they're a little freaked out right now." Andie stood up and pushed her chair in. With one more glance, she turned on her heel. I sighed as Andie left the room. I hoped that she would understand what a difficult situation this was going to be…whatever this situation actually was. Teddy could see Tonks, Fred could see George, and I could see Sirius. Who knew how big this situation was going to get? How was this even happening? Was it even real?

"Hard to believe you're older than me now," he said softly. I turned around. It was so strange to see him standing there, in front of me. A grin on his beautiful face.

"You have no idea how much I've missed your voice," I told Sirius. I held out my hand. I knew that I couldn't feel him, but seeing him place his hand on mine…there was a memory of that feeling. "I can't believe how long it's been since you…left."

"You can say the word, Isabel."

"No," I told him, shaking my head. "I can't say that word. I've lost so many that I think that word has no meaning any more." I looked down at his hand, gripping mine. Merlin, how I wanted to actually feel his touch. Just once even. "You have no idea how difficult it was, after you went away."

"I have some sort of idea. I've been with you, every step of the way."

"What?"

"I've been here even though you couldn't see me. I've been following you, your whole life. There has not been an important moment that I haven't been next to you. Even when you were alone and sad, I was there…especially after my death." My head dropped as I realised that he would have seen me as an absolute mess. "God, Isabel. Why would you do that to yourself over me? You had everything going for you and you threw it all away, just because I was no longer around. Even alcohol addiction - "

"You obviously grossly underestimated how much I loved you," I interrupted, folding my arms.

"All I know is that I wasn't worth running yourself into the ground for."

"You were worth everything," I told him, trying to suppress the tears that were inevitably going to arrive. "Please don't try and tell me that you weren't worth it because clearly, you were Sirius." He sighed and leaned against the wall. He looked at the picture frame on the wall, a family photo that had been taken just after Harry was born in 2010.

"Your family is beautiful," he said softly. "Your boy is the spitting image of you, you know. Apart from the eyes."

"Thank you."

"I have to admit though, I was a bit baffled by your choice in Fred Weasley." I rolled my eyes, why did conversations always have to head into my relationships with people?

"How so?" I leaned against the wall next to him. I felt like I should have found this a little more strange, it's not every day that dead people return to you. I guess after traveling back in time, I haven't found anything else that surprising anymore."

"Well," Sirius said, crossing his arms. "I guess always thought when I was alive, that if something were to happen to me, than it would have been Remus Lupin taking my place. I was just surprised to see that you didn't end up with Remus." It was something that had crossed my mind, numerous times, and somehow I also thought that it was a little surprising. "Although obviously that wouldn't have ended up to well considering, well…let's just say it would have been unfortunate for you to go through it twice."

"Why would you automatically think that I'd end up with him?"

"Isabel, I could see it a mile away. I knew how you felt about him."

"I loved you more!" I exclaimed, standing up straight, then storming over to the other side of the room. I needed to calm down.

"I never said you didn't, but now that you bring it up! Why do you get so defensive, Isabel? You're still as bloody stubborn as you were in 1996!"

I turned around and yelled at him, "I haven't seen you in twenty-four years and we're going to end our first conversation since your death in a fight? Isn't this just holding a mirror to how our relationship was?" My head went to my forehand. This isn't how I wanted this to be. In my dreams, I had always thought of my reunion with Sirius as being sweet. I never imagined us as, well, this. A mess. Sirius walked over to me and placed ran this hand through my hair. I closed my eyes, desperately trying to remember what it felt like.

"I'm sorry," he said softly. "Not just for that, but for everything. For leaving you in 1996. It pained me to watch you grieve over me. You have no idea how much I wanted you to hear me telling you that it would be okay." I looked down, wishing I could have heard him too. Maybe that would have got me through it all. Sirius turned around and looked back over at the pictures on the wall. "You looked incredible on your wedding day. I remember watching you as you looked in the mirror. You took my breath away. And then your smile as you walked down the aisle, now that was something special."

"You were at my wedding?"

"Wedding of the year," he said with a smirk.

"ISABEL!" There was a shout from the front door. I looked around instantly, as did Sirius, to see Andromeda rushing into the room. "Isabel! I need you ask you…no, be quiet Ted!" Ted? Ted Tonks? Her husband? My second father figure? The man who had practically taken me in as his own? She could see someone as well! She hit her hand onto her head, seemingly embarrassed. "You are going to think I'm completely insane but I promise, darling, I'm not. I can see Ted, and I swear it is not a hallucination…Merlin, I sound absolutely off with the fairies."

"Oh hey, it's Andie!" Sirius said, a grin appearing on his face. "Hey, cuz! Oh yeah, she can't see me."

"Andromeda…"

"Isabel, please do not tell anyone, especially Teddy, you know how he can be quite skeptical about things!"

"Andromeda!" She paused and made eye contact with me for the first time. "You can say hello to Sirius. He'll be able to hear you." She seemed confused for the first few moments, but then her eyes widened, and I knew she had caught on.

"Y-you can see…you can see Sirius?" I nodded.

"I can see him. Fred saw George, and Teddy saw - "

"Did he see Nymphadora?" She interrupted, her hand going to her heart. I nodded quickly, but moved on, being on the topic of Tonks hurt a little, knowing that Teddy now had his _real _mother by his side.

"So, you can see Ted. How many others do you think there are?" Andromeda shrugged. "I'm just confused," I told Andromeda. "By all of this. I mean, how…how is this even possible? How are any of us able to see them? How is any of this possible?"

"I think what we need to establish is how many others can see those we have lost."

"I think you'll find that it's quite a few," Sirius interjected.

"What do you mean?" I asked, looking over at Sirius.

"There's quite a few, I believe, that have come back. If there's me, and George, and Tonks, and Ted, what's to say that there aren't a few others?"

"What is Sirius saying?" Andromeda asked to me, looking at me, then at the space Sirius was in.

"He's just saying, what's to say if others haven't come back." I went over his words, and then the people we had lost during the battle. What if others had come back? Worse, what if Death Eaters had appeared to those Death Eaters that had survived the war? There were so many possibilities of what would happen. What if we could see more than one person? I hoped that the possibility of seeing more than one person became true, because there were two more people that I desperately wanted back.

"So what do we do?" Andromeda asked.

"Nothing, because this situation is not unusual whatsoever," Sirius said, giggling to himself. "And don't you have to go to work tonight, Isabel?"

"Shut up, Sirius."

"Ah, how I've missed these times."

"Well, have you two stopped your bickering because we must do something!" I turned back to Andromeda and sighed.

"Let's just go over to the Burrow. Fred might be over there, and perhaps some of them also know what's going on." I took out my wand and pointed it towards the corridor. "Accio coat!" Moments later, my long black coat came flying across the room.

"It's a shame you've gone back to the dresses and jackets," Sirius said with a groan. "I did enjoy your leather stage." I rolled my eyes at him and put my wand in my wand pocket.

"Come on, let's get going," I told Andromeda, completely ignoring Sirius' comments. "The sooner we know what's happening, the better we will understand it. ANDIE!"

"YES MUM?" Andie yelled from up the stairs. I walked to the bottom of the stairs and saw her, Amelie and Harry at the top of the stairs.

"Darlings, I know you're all worried and scared, but I'm going to Grandma Weasley's house to sort this all out, okay? Andie is obviously in charge, Andie if you need me desperately, just apparate to Grandma Weasley's and I'll come home, okay?" I sighed, looking at my youngest child's sad face. "I love all of you, take care. Harry?"

"Yes, Mama?"

"I'll be home soon, I promise." With those words, I turned, walked out of the house onto the sand on the beach, took Andromeda's hand, then disapparated.

* * *

**A/N: I****'****ve been absolutely thrilled with the reception that this story has received already! I****'****ve missed you all so much, how are you all? I****'****m absolutely so happy to be writing about Isabel once again! What do you guys think is happening? **

**Remember guys to visit the tumblr page -  
****bellabellex . tumblr . com**

**Next Chapter preview!  
**"So, let's get this straight. Isabel can see Sirius, Andromeda can see Ted, Molly can see Fabian, Harry can see Dumbledore, Teddy can see Tonks, Fred can see George, Ron can see Dobby, Merlin knows why, and then the rest of us are just here, absolutely confused as to what is happening?" Bill said, perplexed. I nodded, he had just summed up the whole situation. The whole incredibly confusing situation.

"What are we going to say to all the Grandchildren?" Molly asked.

"What's wrong with giving them a little bit of a fright? They've always known ghosts are real anyway, they go to Hogwarts!" Sirius said, standing right behind me.

"Sirius, shut up!" I snapped. Everyone turned to me, how weird it must have looked to see me yelling at what was to them, thin air.


	3. Insane Situations

**Thanks to: Guest, HPFan, TheDiva121, Guest, DelenaElejah1864, MemoirsofaLostCause and Potterhorse-Spirit for your reviews.**

**Songs for this Chapter:  
****Isabel's Theme (See Tumblr)  
****Days are Gone by Haim  
****The Bad Thing by Arctic Monkeys  
****Best Part of Me by St. Leonards**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.**

* * *

I shook off the slight dizziness I felt after disapparating. There, in front of Andromeda and I, was the Burrow, looking as homey as ever. The place had definitely needed repairs over the year, but it was a job that the whole family could successfully do together.

"Can you believe that I have never actually entered this place?" I jumped and looked to my left.

"Okay, this is getting ridiculous," I said. Sirius was standing there, a boyish grin on his face.

"Did I give you a little bit of a fright, baby doll?"

"Do you just pop up everywhere now?" I asked him, shaking my head at his sarcastic looking smirk.

"I told you, I'm wherever you are!" He sighed and picked a long piece of grass from the ground. "That's basically the only rule that applies to this thing. I'm with you wherever you go. I thought you'd be used to this by now, I mean, it has been a couple of hours hasn't it?" I rolled my eyes, it was ridiculous for him to think that I'd be fine with my dead fiancé following me around, talking to me by now. I looked back to Andromeda, who had her eyebrows raised.

"I'm guessing Sirius is here with us?" She said.

"Hey Andie!" Sirius yelled with a smile, waving at his cousin. "It's a shame she can't see me too, imagine how fun this would be. The adventures of Sirius Black, his cousin Andie and his ex-fiancé Isabel Snapeypoo. Wait, you don't go by that name anymore. You're a Weasley! Shouldn't your hair have turned red by now, or is that just a myth that when you marry into the Weasley family that you instantly become a ginger?" I stared at him, staggered at this ability to make such inappropriate jokes at such inappropriate times.

"You guessed right," I grumbled to Andromeda. "Come along, let's get inside." Andromeda and I walked towards the door, and stopped when we could hear loud shouting.

"I'M NOT HAVING HALLUCINATIONS!"

"Molly, calm down."

"I CANNOT CALM DOWN, ARTHUR, IT'S FABIAN! DEAR MERLIN ABOVE!"

"Molly, how about I take you to St. Mungos? They can help you."

"DAD, NO! SHE'S TELLING THE TRUTH, I PROMISE YOU!"

"ARTHUR, HE IS HERE! WHY CAN YOU NOT SEE HIM? IT'S MY BROTHER! WHY WOULD I LIE?" Andromeda and I turned to each other. Yet another person could see a dead loved one. I opened the door and walked right into the living room, where Bill, Fleur, Victorie and Charlie watched as Molly, Arthur and Fred stood arguing. Bill, Fleur, Victorie and Charlie saw Andromeda and I, and their eyes begged for us to do something.

"Fred!" I ran over to my husband and took his arm, trying to get his attention. "Fred, Molly…I believe you."

"What?" Arthur said, his eyes full of disbelief. I felt a hand on my shoulder and looked to see Andromeda, standing close behind me.

"Fred can see George and Molly can see her brother, Arthur, it is true."

"And how would you know this?" Arthur Weasley asked, throwing his hands in the air.

"Because I can see Ted, Teddy can see Nymphadora and Isabel can see Sirius."

"You can see Sirius?" Fred said, looking to me. "I'm not sure if I'm okay with the fact that you can see your ex-boyfriend."

"Fiancé actually," Andromeda told him.

"Calm down, mate. It's not like I can steal her away…I'm dead," Sirius chimed in. I rolled my eyes, then looked over to Bill, Fleur, Victorie and Charlie, who all looked completely and utterly dumbfounded. I didn't blame them, it probably did seem a little strange that all these people had arrived at the Burrow announcing that they could see dead people. It would have been especially strange for Fleur, who had never been a big fan of ghosts or anything to do with the afterlife. Death scared her, she said. It reminded her of a darker place that none of us should ever have to see. If Sirius was anything to go by, maybe death wasn't too dark of a place to be.

"Fred just forget that for now, okay?" I told him. "What we have to focus on first is actually finding out how many people have been affected by this." Fred looked down and stepped back in defeat. I was glad to see him back off, he needed not to worry so much about who I could see. He needed to worry about _why_ we could see them.

"AAAHHHHHHH!" Everyone turned their heads to the loud scream coming from the doorway. Running in came Ron Weasley, Hermione, Rose and Hugo following him. "I'M GOING INSANE, I'M GOING BLOODY INSANE!" Ron yelled. He stopped when he realised everyone was here. "Oh. Er. Hello everyone…no, now is not the time!" He said, looking down next to him. Ron was another one who was experiencing what we were.

"Who can you see, Ron?" Andromeda asked.

"What, how do you…wait…can you see him too?"

"See who, mate?" Bill asked.

"Dobby's here! The bloody house elf has been following me around for the past half an hour!"

"We can't see him, Ron," Charlie told him.

"That's it, I am going bloody insane. Hermione, take me to St. Mungos, now! Kids, you stay here with Grandma and Grandfather Weasley!"

"Ron, wait!" Fred stepped forward and grabbed his brother by the arm. "I can see George."

"What?" Ron's eyes widened as he took in what Fred had just told him. Ron was one of the first people to see George's dead body during the Battle of Hogwarts, it couldn't have been an easy thing for Ron to digest.

"I can see him, mate. Mum can see Uncle Fabian. Andromeda can see Ted Tonks, Teddy can see Nymphadora, and Isabel can see Sirius Black." This was getting a little insane. I was honestly becoming worried, at first I was glad we could see them, It meant that we had the company of those loved ones that we had lost. However, now was different. If all of these people were coming back as ghosts, what's to say others who died during the war would not come back? Death Eaters, for instance. We had to monitor this situation carefully, with vigilance.

"If you can all see someone meaningful, why did I end up with Dobby the house elf?" Ron asked. That was a fair point, why on earth could he see Dobby? No one answered Ron, they were probably all as dumbfounded as I was.

"We need to keep tabs on everyone else that can see others. Has anyone spoken to Harry?" Arthur asked. Harry would be an interesting case, he had lost so many in his life that meant so much to him. I could see Sirius, and Ron could see Dumbledore, so that kept them out of the equation, but there were still three huge possibilities for Harry - his parents and Dumbledore. I hoped he could see Lily, but then again, having Dumbledore's advice for a situation like this would be useful.

"Someone contact Harry," I said.

"On it," Bill replied, turning around and leaving the room.

"We should all place bets on who Harry sees, James can start 5-1 favourite," Sirius said with a grin. I turned around and glared at him. He raised his hands in the air, signalling his surrender. "Sorry, sorry. Do you know how much harsher your glare has become over the years? Maybe its the wrinkles." I couldn't believe the words coming out of Sirius' mouth. I wished that I could hit him over the head, or something. I wished he could feel it. "Okay, I'm sorry. You don't have wrinkles, baby doll. I hear veela's don't do the whole wrinkles thing until they're around one hundred years old, it's safe to say you'll be okay."

"You're lucky that I can't hit you right now," I whispered. I looked back over at everyone else. "Sorry, I have to sort out the smart arse over here that I can only see. You're lucky you all have decent people following you around, I have this idiot to deal with."

"Idiot!" Sirius gasped. "Well, count me as offended."

"Harry's on his way over now," Bill announced, walking back into the room. "It turns out the return of Dumbledore is upon us. Well, in one way." Dumbledore, that was surprising. I definitely was hoping that Harry could see one of his parents, so that he'd get to spend more than thirty seconds with them and have some times with them. It was so cruel, fate was separating Harry and his parents at all costs. I sighed, at least with Harry able to see Dumbledore, we would be able to receive extra guidance about this situation. It was foreign to all of us, but maybe, just maybe, Dumbledore had seen something like this. I heard the noise of a knock on the front door, and then the door opening. Moments after, Harry walked into the room. Ginny and his children weren't with him. I wondered if they knew.

"Harry, how good to see you, dear," Molly said with a smile. Harry gave his mother-in-law a quick hug to make her happy, then stood back and looked at everyone.

"So, I guess we should talk about the situation," Harry said.

"Let's get this straight. Isabel can see Sirius, Andromeda can see Ted, Molly can see Fabian, Harry can see Dumbledore, Teddy can see Tonks, Fred can see George, Ron can see Dobby, Merlin knows why, and then the rest of us are just here, absolutely confused as to what is happening?" Bill explained, somewhat perplexed. I nodded, he had just summed up the whole situation. The whole incredibly confusing, and slightly crazy situation.

"What are we going to say to all the grandchildren?" Molly asked nervously. They would always be at the front of her mind. The grandchildren were always the first priority.

"What's wrong with giving them a little bit of a fright? They've always known ghosts are real anyway, they go to Hogwarts!" Sirius said, standing right behind me.

"Sirius, shut up!" I snapped. Everyone turned to me, how weird it must have looked to see me yelling at what was to them, thin air. "Sorry…sorry…"

"Sirius, give Isabel a break, alright!" Harry said, looking in my direction.

"Okay, sir! Gee, he's getting old isn't he!" I rolled my eyes, ignoring Sirius' comment.

"I think we should tell the children," Hermione said. "Perhaps it would be best for them to know what is going on. Especially in the case of our family, Isabel's family and Harry's family, they need to be told because those in that house are going to…have a guest, if you will. There is no use in keeping secrets from them, when they are going to be confused and worried about what this strange thing is anyway."

"I agree, Hermione," Fred told her, nodding. I also agreed with her. We all knew that I was the master of keeping secrets, and I had to change my ways. The truth was the most beneficial thing at the moment, and that is what I'm going to live my life by from now on. Fred and I would return home and explain to Andie, Amelie and Harry exactly what's going on, and spare no detail. Tonks, George and Sirius are practically going to be guests in our house, so it was only right to explain to the children who they are and why they're there.

"I'd also like to keep tabs on this whole situation," I told everyone. Some of the stared at me, not knowing what I meant, so I began to explain further. "Harry, could you please watch for suspicious behaviour at the Auror Office, and I'll do my best at the Ministry to see who perhaps is going through the same thing as us. I think that we also need to know inside of Azkaban as well."

"Azkaban?" Charlie asked, surprised that I'd even say the name.

"Yes, because well, there are dead Death Eaters, lets not kid ourselves here. It would be a threat," I replied. "Harry, can you take care of that?"

"I'm on it."

"Are we really doing this, Isabel?" Bill asked. "Isn't it a bit silly to be monitoring people because we believe the ghosts of Death Eaters may return?"

"But they're not ghosts, Bill. They have a physical presence, and even though we cannot feel them, they're here. We have to treat it as a risk, it's an unknown."

"Nice to hear that I have a physical presence. Don't you just love that word, physical?" Sirius laughed to himself behind me. I didn't turn to look at him, ignoring was better.

"We better get home," I said, looking over to Fred. "Teddy might be back, and the other three will be in such a daze. We need to explain to them what's going on." Fred looked at me with an expression that I had not seen for so long. I hadn't seen it since we broke up after the Battle of Hogwarts, and it worried me. His eyes were seemingly void of warmth and love. It honestly scared me. "We'll keep in touch, okay?" I said to everyone else, turning on a smile.

"Are we going home now?" Sirius asked with a grin on his face.

"Come on Fred, let's just go," I told him, ignoring Sirius.

* * *

"Where on earth have you two been? Teddy's been scaring us all!" Andie said, marching up to Fred and I as soon as we stepped inside the front door. I immediately hugged my eldest daughter. I felt so much guilt for just walking out without much notice, leaving her to hold the fort here at home.

"I'm sorry darling," I whispered to her.

"Mama!" Harry ran down the stairs and gripped my leg tightly. "Where did you go?" His big eyes were full of confusion. It was time to tell them exactly what was happening, no evading the truth about something as huge as this. I took Harry's hand and led him into our living room. The others followed and all sat down on the couch, facing Fred and I. Fred was standing behind me, but didn't place his hand on my shoulder. He showed nothing that resembled any sort of closeness.

"Now we need you to all listen very carefully. You think you can do that for us?" Andie, Amelie and Harry all nodded. Before I could go on, Teddy entered the room and looked over at me. I looked at him, wanting to say something and ask if he was okay…ask if him and I were okay, but I couldn't get the words out. I looked back to the other three. I just had to keep my emotions in check.

"Okay, so this is going to sound incredibly strange to each of you, but bear with me here, okay?" I glanced at Sirius, who was standing at the mantle piece of the fireplace, looking at all of the photos that were set there. "Now, your father, he can see your Uncle George. Remember the one that died in the Battle of Hogwarts? He can see him, and he has a physical presence in this house."

"That's crazy," Andie said, brushing it off.

"Is it? Because Teddy can see Nymphadora Tonks." I couldn't say that she was his mum. I couldn't. "Grandma Weasley can see her dead brother, Uncle Harry can see Dumbledore, Uncle Ron can see Dobby the house elf, and I can see Sirius Black. This isn't a strange occurrence…well, it is, but it's not crazy. It's possible and it's happening."

"So, are they ghosts?" Amelie asked.

I shook my head. "I don't think so, because if they were ghosts, you'd be able to see them too, wouldn't you? And they have a physical presence here. I can't feel them, but ghosts can get through doors and windows and any physical object, and they can't."

"What are you doing from here?" Amelie said. She looked worried, but at the same time, there was curiosity in her eyes. Ghosts had always been something of fascination for Amelie, so I was sure that she would be the first person to go away and research this.

"Look, darling. I really don't know. I think we're just going to have to wait and see what happens," I told her, shrugging my shoulders.

"What do you think about this?" Andie asked, looking up at her father. I turned around to see Fred step back and lean against the window. When Fred remained silent, Andie rolled her eyes. "Surely you think something of the fact that Mum can see her dead ex-fiancé. Does that not bother you?" My eyes widened, I was furious. She wasn't supposed to bring this up in front of the Amelie and Harry.

"What?" Amelie said, looking to me.

"Andie!" I yelled. "How dare you."

"What? It's a legitimate question!"

"Andie that wasn't needed," Fred told her with a sigh, like he was defeated.

"Isabel, is that true?" Teddy, for the first time, contributed to the conversation. Everyone stopped and looked at him. He just called me Isabel. For the first time in my entire life, he called me something other than Mum, Mama or Mummy. I was horrified. "What, why is everyone looking at me?"

"Teddy, what did you just call Mum?" Harry asked.

"Oh, right. Sorry, Mum." Teddy placed an apologetic smile on his face, but also laughed nervously. He knew that he'd hurt me. I couldn't deal with all of this anymore, so I walked out of the room and into the kitchen. I put on the kettle and leaned against the bench. My head was spinning. What was I going to do? My dead fiancé was following me around, my son wasn't calling me Mum anymore. What else did life want to throw at me this time?

"Tough day, baby doll?" I looked up through my hair to see Sirius walking into the kitchen. "A bit of an obvious question, isn't it?"

"Isabel." Fred walked into the kitchen and stood next to the stove. "We need to sort out what we're going to do."

"GEORGE!" I jumped and looked over at Sirius. "Well this is new!" I turned my head back to look at Fred, who'd also jumped away.

"Fred, did George just yell at Sirius?" Fred nodded. "Sirius," I said, turning back to him. "What's going on?"

"I can see George! I can actually see him! This is completely new!" He said, and began walking over to a completely empty space, his hand extended. "I CAN FEEL YOU TOO! Well, this is amazing!" I walked over to Fred and gripped his hand. I pulled him into the next room so we could talk alone, now that Sirius and George were distracted.

"I'm sorry," I whispered, putting my arms around him. "I'm seriously so sorry."

"It's not your fault," he sighed, placing a kiss on my head. "We're just going to have to work this out together, like we always do. And from here, who knows where we go?"

"Just promise me we'll work together to get through this and work it all out. Promise me," I said, placing my hands on his chest, staring up at him intently.

"I promise."

* * *

**A/N: Sorry for the late update guys, hope you enjoyed the chapter! **

**Tumblr:  
****bellabellex . tumblr . com**

**Next Chapter:  
**"Morning, baby doll." I jumped, my toothbrush falling into the sink. I looked up and glared at Sirius through the mirror. He walked over to my and ran his hand through my hair, even though I couldn't feel it. "I see you still haven't given up wearing my favourite pyjamas to bed…if you could even call them that," he said with a wink. "Please tell me your children haven't seen you in them, because honestly, that'd be beyond inappropriate for a child to see their mother in a - "

"Seriously?"

"My name's Sirius…" I rolled my eyes and turned back to the sink to brush my teeth. Sirius leaned back against the wall, watching me, and checking out my behind, as I brushed my teeth. I put the toothbrush down and then walked back into the bedroom.


	4. Work It Out

**Songs for this Chapter:  
****Isabel's Theme (see Tumblr)  
****Not A Bad Thing by Justin Timberlake  
****Shuffle by Bombay Bicycle Club  
****Alleyways by The Neighbourhood**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.**

* * *

I woke up, the sun was bright and warm coming through the window into my bedroom. I pushed off the covers and walked into the bathroom that adjoined to our bedroom. I ran the cold water and splashed it over my face. I picked up my toothbrush and placed it under the running water.

"Morning, baby doll." I jumped, my toothbrush falling into the sink. I looked up and glared at Sirius through the mirror. He walked over to my and ran his hand through my hair, even though I couldn't feel it. "I see you still haven't given up wearing my favourite pyjamas to bed…if you could even call them that," he said with a wink. "Please tell me your children haven't seen you in them, because honestly, that'd be beyond inappropriate for a child to see their mother in a - "

"Seriously?"

"My name's Sirius…" I rolled my eyes and turned back to the sink to brush my teeth. Sirius leaned back against the wall, watching me, and checking out my behind, as I brushed my teeth. I put the toothbrush down and then walked back into the bedroom. I looked down at Fred, who was still fast asleep. I smiled, he looked so much like his younger self when he was sleeping. I went into my wardrobe and picked out my clothes, then got changed and slipped on my heels.

"Great, where are we going?"

"_I'm _going to work," I told him, flashing a fake smile. I walked down the stairs, placing my wand in my wand pocket. I started walking towards the front door.

"Don't be so cold to me, Isabel," he said with a frown. I sighed, I was being stupid. I didn't have to act like this towards him. I should be happy that I have him back, not angry that he's here, following me around. I turned around and placed my hand on his chest. I looked at my hand and then back up at him, just waiting that perhaps I might actually be able to feel him. It didn't happen.

"I'm sorry," I whispered. "I just don't know what to do about this all, okay? You know I don't meant to be harsh on you." I turned around and walked out the front door. Sirius shut the door and followed me. "So, where were you last night when I was sleeping?" I asked as we walked along the road. "I know that sounds strange but I am genuinely interested, because I know watching Fred and I asleep on for eight hours must have been delightful."

"George and I were sitting outside on the sand mainly, talking about what it's been like to follow you around for your whole lives."

"Wasn't it cold outside?" I was surprised, the beach was freezing at night, even in winter. The breeze is usually far too chilly.

"I don't feel the cold, Isabel. I'm dead, remember?" Sirius had a huge grin on his face, and soon he began laughing. It was such a strange thing to laugh at, I mean, he was dead. But at the same time, how obvious it was and how strange this situation was just brought out the hilarity of this strange situation. "Your laugh is so brilliant," he said when he was able to catch his breath. "It got even better after you had children. Kids brought out something in you, Isabel. Watching you ever since you adopted Teddy and had Andie, I don't know, it was like you were made to have children. Which is funny, considering your father…"

"I used to think there was this hype about being a mother," I told him as we continued to walk down the road, my high heels hitting the pavement lightly. "I never really believed it until Teddy giggled for the first time."

"How long was that after Tonks' death?" He asked.

"She died in May, when Teddy was a month old. We adopted him shortly after, and when he was around three months, Fred and I were playing around with him, and he looked at me, smiled and then began to giggle." I smiled myself, remembering back to that absolutely magical moment. I remember it was a huge milestone for the whole family. Molly and Arthur invited the whole family over to the Burrow, just so they could hear Teddy's little giggle. My smile faded away as I realised who Teddy could see now. Who was with him every moment of the day.

"You'll always be his mum, Isabel," Sirius said softly. I looked over at him, shocked. Shocked that he just knew.

"She gave birth to him," I said with a sigh. "Not me. That makes her his mother."

"I said you'll always be his mum. There's a difference. She was gone when he was not even a month old. Although he knows you didn't give birth to him, you were the one that took him in and raised him. You tucked him into bed when he was young, read him bedtime stories, hugged him tightly when he was afraid. You were the one who sent him to Hogwarts and welcomed him back with open arms when he returned home for the holidays. You were the one that he first called mum. Tonks' death was tragic, but it happened, and Teddy needed a mum, and you were there, and now he's as much your son as the other three who you have birth to, isn't he?" I nodded, tears welling in my eyes.

"Thank you Sirius," I whispered with a smile.

* * *

I arrived at the Ministry, and it was as busy as always. I surprised myself that I ended up here, head of Education as well. After teaching for a few years at Hogwarts after the war, managing to keep the 'cursed' Defence Against the Dark Arts position for longer than a year, Kingsley Shacklebolt, the Minister of Magic, approached me asking to head the Department of Magical Education. I was shocked, imagining myself at the head of a department was a strange idea. I remember Minerva making trips to my house during the Summer break every second day, begging that I stay at Hogwarts.

_"__Who else would take your place?" _

_"__Minerva, I'm sorry, I have to consider all options. Harry's without his mother for many months of the year. I can't keep leaving Fred with the burden of looking after him on his own, and I can't be apart from Harry for this long anymore. It's a very attractive offer."_

Minerva ultimately lost her battle, and I moved on to the Ministry. The types of people at the Ministry was varied. There were those who simply wanted to get on with their jobs, and do it to the best of their ability. Then there were those who were completely ridiculous, who wanted to ruin you until they had your position. And then there were the fans…those who couldn't believe they were in the presence of someone who was awarded an Order of Merlin. In any case, I ignored them and took on my job. I actually did enjoy it, I still do. I was passionate about the education that young wizards and witches were receiving, probably because as a mother myself I wanted my children to have the best education possible.

"Wow, this place hasn't changed much has it?" Sirius said as we walked through the atrium. I stopped when we reached the fountain.

"This was the last place we talked," I whispered, as to not draw attention to myself. I glanced to see Sirius' hand on my shoulder. As always, I couldn't feel it. I sighed and stared ahead of me. It was surreal to think that the last place I truly got to hold him was here in 1996.

"Morning, Mrs. Weasley!" I turned around to see Andie's fiancé, Jack Wood, approaching me. He had begun working at the British and Irish Quidditch League Headquarters in the Department for Magical Games and Sports on Level 7 with his father, Oliver.

"Jack, for the last time, call me Isabel, please. Mrs. Weasley is my mother-in-law."

"Sorry, Mrs…Isabel," he replied with a grin. "How was my beautiful fiancé this morning?"

"I didn't see her actually, she must've slept in," I told him. "She's quite stressed with wedding preparations."

"Well, I guess she's lucky to have so many women in the family to help her out. Ma said she'd come over soon if you needed any help as well." Oliver's Ma, Katie Bell, had become a dear friend of mine since the engagement. We'd spend ages talking about colour schemes, venues, and the all important dress. Sometimes Andie didn't listen to us, even though we'd been through it all before. "I'd best be off. Have a good day." Soon enough, Jack was off towards the lifts.

"He's terrified of you," Sirius said. I didn't reply to him, because I knew it'd look strange in front of all these people. "But who wouldn't be terrified of you? Legend of the Second Wizarding War, the woman that killed Bellatrix Lestrange. And possibly the sexiest woman in Wizarding history." A small smile graced my face. I couldn't help but be flattered by Sirius' words.

"Ah! Isabel!" I breathed in deeply. It was the same routine every morning. Put on a smile and show everyone that I was happy to see them. I turned around with an over-the-top smile to see the Minister himself, Kingsley Shacklebolt, approaching me. My smile changed from forced to genuine. I liked Kingsley, and I liked the way he ran he Ministry. The corruption had been weeded out, and the Ministry had become a much better place to be.

"Morning, Kingsley."

"We need to have a talk," he said, his tone serious. I realised the expression on his face was one that I had not seen in so long. I nodded, knowing what this was about. Kingsley's expression was one that he had whenever there was a major problem. But who was it that he could see? Kingsley turned and began walking towards the lifts. We got in and headed towards Level 1, where Kingsley's office was…a little bit further than my office on Level 2, where the Department of Magical Law Enforcement was. We reached Level 1 and walked out of the lift. Walking down the hall, I spotted someone in the distance. I put my arm in front of Kingsley to stop him, then pressed my index finger to my lips, indicating him to be quiet. I looked back at the person, who appeared to be talking to themselves.

"This is insane, you can't be here…" Kingsley and I glanced at each other, then looked back. "So now I can't work in peace? It's strange enough that I have a dead person following me around, but now I'm probably looking like an idiot talking to you! If someone saw…"

"Well this is a familiar sight," Sirius said beside me. After a few moments, the person ahead of us stopped talking and walked away. Kingsley and I continued towards his office. Once we had made it (which took much longer than I had thought, as Kingsley enjoyed saying hello to almost everyone who walked past us), I sat down and Kingsley poured me a cup of tea.

"Did you understand what was happening there?" I asked Kingsley before taking a sip of my tea.

"I take it this is happening to you too?" He replied, confirming my suspicions.

"I don't know if what's happening to you is the same thing as what is happening to me. If we're thinking of the same thing, then yes. And it's happening to a whole heap of others by the looks of it."

"Who can you see?"

"Sirius," I told him. He seemed taken aback by my response, the look in his eyes was one of almost disbelief. "What, what is it?"

"I am just surprised, that is all."

"Surprised about what?"

"Does it not speak volumes that you can see Sirius over Remus and your father? Perhaps he had a more profound impact on your life than the rest of us realised."

"Come on mate, I was engaged to the woman!" Sirius shouted. I turned around and laughed at Sirius. It was funny, all these times when people doubted how close we were after his death, he was probably there, saying the exact same thing. Sirius shot a wink in my direction, then leaned back against the wall. "You should probably find out who Kingsley can see, baby doll." I turned back to face Kingsley, whose eyebrows were raised.

"He's here, I assume?" I nodded in response. "What did he reply to what I said?"

"He just had the same reaction to what you said as I do to everyone else who says the same thing. We were engaged, Kingsley, of course he had a profound impact on my life." I lifted the hot tea to my lips and took another sip. Kingsley always knew how to make the perfect tea. Maybe that's why he was appointed Minister for Magic?

"I can see Alastor Moody," Kingsley told me. "He says hello to you." I didn't find this strange anymore, people passing on messages through the dead, so I thought I'd respond.

"Hello, Alastor," I said with a small smile.

"How many others can see the dead? Who can they see?" Kingsley sat down on his side of the desk and clasped his hands. He'd stopped smiling, and the stern expression had returned.

"Andromeda can see Ted Tonks, Molly can see her brother, Gideon I think it is, Fred can see George, Teddy can see Tonks, Ron, for some unknown reason, can see Dobby the house elf, and Harry can see Dumbledore." Kingsley sat back in his seat and sighed. Obviously others could see people too, hence the man outside talking to 'himself'. I wondered, would this become an issue for the Ministry? Would it become an issue for the Wizarding World in general? There was always that possibility of the unwanted returning…those that we got rid of during the Second Wizarding War.

"What are you going to do?" I asked Kingsley.

"Nothing for the moment. I have to sort out my options first." I rose from my seat and placed the empty teacup in front of me. I thought he was doing the right thing, not rushing to fix anything.

"I should be getting to my office," I told Kingsley.

"Update me if the situation changes within your family and extended family."

"Will do. Thanks for the tea."

* * *

"Look at you, big shot," Sirius said as we walked into my office. I shut the door behind me, took off my coat and placed it on my coat rack. I walked over to my desk and placed my wand down, then sat on my seat, ready for work. "May I just say, this office is incredibly tasteful. Much nicer than most others, even though I haven't exactly visited them. But it is definitely a lovely change from your office at Hogwarts, it was bloody freezing in there, and I'm dead!" He pulled up a chair and sat beside me. I was still shocked that he had a physical presence and I couldn't feel him. "Head of a department at the Ministry of Magic. Look at you, baby doll. Stepping up in the world."

_Knock knock._

I jumped at the sound of knocking at the door.

"Come in," I said, patting down my clothes, as if it'd make me look more professional.

"Morning." It was Harry Potter, my brother-in-law. It was funny how we were all connected now through marriage to a Weasley. "How's everything going?" I glanced next to me to see Sirius, simply grinning at his godson.

"It's going okay," I told Harry. "By the way, your godfather's here." Harry looked to my left, exactly where, to him, the empty chair was.

"Hi Harry," Sirius said softly.

"Hi Sirius," Harry said softly, almost in reply to his godfather. "D'you think we'll ever get to see everyone else?" Harry asked, his tone almost hopeful. "I mean, you won't just get to see one person that has passed, but everyone?"

"I think that's all one can ever hope for, to be reunited with their loved ones," I said. "But not like this, Harry. I'm frightened that if we get to see everyone that has passed, there may be risks with that. And I'm worried that your Auror office will have to deal with those risks. Sure, we would be happy to be spending time with our loved ones again, but there are those out there with loved ones that have posed a risk to our society before. And let's not forget that they have a physical presence here…" Harry looked down and sighed. I looked at Sirius, who was looking at his godson, his eyes sad. I leaned over and gripped Harry's hand.

"I hope you get to see them at some point, Harry." I smiled at him, gripped his hand tightly, then let go. Harry stood up and smiled.

"Thanks, Isabel. How's my godfather?"

"Harry's doing wonderfully, a bit miffed by this whole back from the dead situation though. He's been asking about you though."

"He'll have to come and spend a night at ours, Ginny'd love to spoil him rotten."

"Everyone spoils him rotten, the lucky boy."

"Well, can you blame everyone?" Harry and I laughed once more before Harry left my office, leaving Sirius and myself alone again.

"I'm so proud of him," Sirius told me.

"I think we all are."

* * *

As I sat at my desk, reading over reports from different professors at Hogwarts, and reading over proposed changes to the curriculum, there was another knock at my door. I became frustrated whenever anyone broke my focus, however I placed my quill down and looked up at my door.

"Come in." In walked a young man. He quickly placed a note on my desk and left without another word.

"That was strange," Sirius said.

"You're telling me." I picked up the note and began reading.

_Hello darling,  
__Confusion has hit the Malfoy Manor. Please come visit promptly.  
__Narcissa._

"I find it ridiculous that you've become best friend with Narcissa Malfoy of all people," Sirius said. I looked at his face, which was full of disgust as he glanced over his cousin's handwriting. "Honestly, she did some horrible things in her lifetime, I don't understand how she's been forgiven so easily."

"She saved my life and she saved Harry's life. I'm sorry, but she's deserved her clemency."

"And Lucius?"

"We're not speaking about this," I said sternly."

"Every other Death Eater was sentenced to Azkaban. Some to death. Don't tell me Lucius Malfoy didn't deserve a stint in Azkaban, along with his son and wife. And you were the one that made that possible, you were the one that granted them a life of freedom! And after what he did to you! It's craziness, that's what it is."

"Shut up, Sirius!" I shouted at him. I picked up my quill again and went back to writing and reading over reports. Yes, I was the one to grant them their freedom, but they deserved it. They helped save Harry's life. And as long as I was alive, Draco Malfoy would have never ever served a prison sentence, no matter what everyone else thought.

* * *

I arrived at the Malfoy Manor as soon as I had finished work. I had let Fred know that he would have to start dinner, and that I had important business to attend to. I didn't state what business, as he didn't like Lucius very much. No one liked Lucius very much. I didn't like Lucius very much, but he was tolerated, as I enjoyed the company of his wife and his son. I looked to my right as I walked through the large front doors. Sirius walked beside me, looking around at the huge mansion. It was not as well kept as it used to be, but it was still an awe-inspiring building.

"Isabel?" I looked to the staircase to see Narcissa hurrying down the stairs. As soon as she reached me, she placed her arms around me, pulling me into a hug.

"What's going on?" I asked her.

"I'm terribly confused…can the living see the dead?" Not Narcissa too…

"Who can you see?" Narcissa stepped back and ushered me towards the front sitting room.

"My mother won't leave me alone," she said as we sat down.

"Her mother? Oh god, I even feel sorry for her now!" Sirius said from behind me.

"Your mother?" I shivered, thinking of the horrible woman. I had heard stories from Andromeda of how horrid she was, especially after she found out Andromeda was dating Ted. You had to be a horrible woman to bring up someone as awful as Bellatrix Lestrange. A part of me breathed a sigh of relief, though, knowing it was not Bellatrix herself.

"Lucius can see his father too. Tell me this isn't a one off occurrence."

"I can see Sirius," I told her. Her hand went to her lips to contain a gasp. Her eyes widened as she realised this was not a strange occurrence. "Although, I do feel sorry for you, Narcissa, being around your mother must be…difficult, perhaps." I can't imagine her mother being too impressed with the fact that they helped our side win the war. I can't imagine her being too impressed that she has forgiven Andromeda either, and that I, a half-blood, is in this house.

"What are we going to do about this?" Narcissa asked.

"I've talked to the Minister about this, he's working out his options. So just hang tight." Narcissa nodded at my words. We'd work this out somehow. We've got to work it out. But at the same time, did I want this all to change? I looked at Sirius. Did I want him gone again? Would the others want to let go of their loved ones? I highly doubted it.

* * *

**A/N: Guys, where were the reviews for last chapter? I know you were reading last chapter, I saw the traffic, but next to no reviews! No reviews makes me sad. **

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**Next Chapter:**

"Sirius, do you - "

"Yeah, I see him…"

Both of us stared at the individual in front of us.

"Well, it wouldn't be right if it was just us two without him, would it?" Sirius said, a smile appearing on his face.


End file.
